donali

My man is a scientist, and has no illusions of being a Tim Allen impersonator. Can you believe he has no interest in TV sports?!?! I may be a "fossil" widow at various times throughout the year, but I'll never have to worry about the Superbowl ruining my romantic evenings... lol

Tellie, some people just don't say the right things. (((((((((HUGS))))))))) You're going to do great. Chin up, girl - this will be over before you know it, and you'll be back in the saddle again!

Got most of the long side done today - just have one more strip across the top, and the last section between the corner and the last window. Then the back around the french doors, and a little strip at the top of the front door.

BF moves in on Tuesday, 9/28, after nearly 10 years of long distance dating...

Thank goodness you are finally on the mend!! Aren't these gross episodes such amazing memories??? I get creeped out, but also revisit those memories in awe... lol

What a relief - a real "emergency" site! Thanks, Ryan. I have bookmarked the address, and know where to go in the event of the "unthinkable". I haven't read any of the posts on your site yet, but over time I'll get caught up. It is truly a relief to be able to go somewhere and be yourself, without the expectations and burden of love to be our best. We all know that we can only truly give to others when we have taken care of ourselves first. Too often we are running on empty, and wondering where we will find the strength to be the strong one. So glad you found us, and that we are able to fill you up when you need a little recharge. (((hugs)))

Congrats, Nancy!! TWO MORE DAYS!!! Whoo hooo! Wishing you a speedy and uneventful recovery!!

Chantal - My heart goes out to you. I cannot even imagine the pain you are experiencing right now. Wishing you strength throughout this coming transition, and a calm and peace at the acceptance of what you need to do. ((((Chantal))))

Well, folks. It is 8:30 pm here in sunny SD, and the sun is nowhere to be seen, so my construction day is officially over. That leaves FIVE, count THEM FIVE days left to get this place under control!! Yikes!!! And what am I doing???? Logged into LBT, whining about only having FIVE days left!! lol The California room is going to be the new stash-n-dash destination for the time being, I'm afraid. But, the siding is almost all up! P.S. - Did I mention I only have FIVE days left?!?!

Those of us who are able are hitting Vegas the weekend of 10/8-10/10. Many of us are staying at the HoJo's on Paradise Rd. All are welcome! Penni is the coordinator - do a search on her name and vegas, and you should be able to find the details!

Here you go!!

Tellie - So sorry about your predicaments. I don't think you CAN wait to get this fixed until your doc gets back. Wishing you all the best, and a speedy recovery. ((hugs))

Penni - My heart breaks for your step-father - I am so glad that you are able to be there for your folks when they need you. Sending all my best wishes and thoughts for your Mom's health. **hugs**

Nancy, it sounds like you have done some really great work, both physically and mentally. How does one get the motivation to do the things we know will help us?? That is a wonderful question. At our top weights, most of us were in crisis. We could not do the normal, everyday activities that our friends and family enjoyed. Just doing the bare minimum of routines was a challenge and chore. For some of us, personal hygiene was even an issue. When you are at a point of crisis, it is much easier to find the motivation to change. Life becomes unbearable to continue along the same path. Once that pressing crisis has been relieved, however, it does seem more difficult to find motivation to continue. I really do think that our attitudes and focus have a lot to do with it, and when we are no longer in crisis about our weight, weightloss as a motivator is not very compelling. Perhaps you could find another, MORE compelling reason to eat healthier more often besides weightloss. Perhaps a goal of a marathon, or a long hiking trip, or something like that can change your focus more towards a healthy lifestyle where continued weightloss is a by-product, instead of a focus. Leatha's dance lessons are a good example. She's out having fun, not focusing on her weight - but I've no doubt the dancing will help her achieve her weightloss goals. And of course, there is always the possibility that deep down somewhere in your subconscious, you ARE at your goal. Is it impossible for you to see yourself happy at your current weight? Do you feel like you're a failure? I feel like you're a success! If I get anymore bright ideas I'll pass them along, but I'm kind of in the same boat as you are - you already have more motivation than I do - you're actually exercising consistently!! I have to accept the fact that for whatever reason, consistent exercise has not been important enough to me to be sure I do it. I am not motivated to exercise. I would like to lose more, but I may not be willing to change enough to do so. But I am still thrilled with myself where I am! And if I STAYED where I am, that wouldn't be such a bad thing. I think about it everyday, and know that my opportunity to change exists for as long as I draw breath... **hugs**

Hi Nancy - I feel your pain, I truly do. Dieting really ISN'T the answer. However, it DOES sound like you do need to change the ratios of the foods you are eating, if you are indeed, as you say, eating around the band. What kind of therapy are you in? Is it specific to eating disorders? Have you spent time analyzing WHY you are choosing some of the foods you think you'd do better to eat less of? Taste, texture, and cravings are all reasons to choose less nutritious foods, but I believe that underlying those "obvious" reasons is usually something more. Because food works on a chemical level in our bodies, it is not surprising that those of us who medicate with food gravitate to certain kinds of food when we are experiencing emotional stressors. The only way to change that gravitation is to substitute something else that gives us the same desired result. If we're eating for entertainment, we need to find something else that entertains us as well as food. If we're eating because we're nervous or upset, we need to find something else to do that is equally soothing. I don't know what kind of work you are doing with your therapist, but I really would suggest that you keep an emotional diary, and list the foods you are eating. See if there is a correllation between types of foods and your emotions. If you can draw any kind of parallels there, try making a list of alternate activities you can try instead of eating for emotional reasons. I don't have a lot of specifics about what you eat on average, or the number of calories you're consuming on average, so this is my best advice on your general question. Please remember that the fact that you are within 10 pounds of your lowest post-band weight is a huge accomplishment, and do not despair or get down on yourself. Look at this like a puzzle, and see if you can figure out which piece is turned upside down. We'll help analyze any way we can! **hugs**

Wow, Alex, you are a saint for hosting this site! I didn't realize it was a part of your own servers. Alexandra, so glad you have a way of contacting him. Please let him know that if at any time in the future he wants to bow out to please let us know - I'm sure we would want to somehow move this site if possible and keep it going with all the current history.

Not my idea - just expounding upon yours! I felt panicked at the thought of this site going dark permanently with no warning, and wanted to have a back-up plan NOW, since Penni is busy... Once Penni is back in the loop, she can figure out a better way for us to regroup if ever needed. Okay, Penni? I just nominated you to Mom us all!

I LOVE these rooms!!! Too, too cool. My grandpa was an artist, and always had a mural of the mountains and a lake painted on one wall. I've always meant to do that myself, but never owned a house until now. I can only imagine how long it would take me to do that project, so I won't even think about it at this time, but LOVE how yours came out!! Whoo hooo! And there is definitely a demand for this sort of thing, if you're up to starting a business. But I think owning your own business can be overrated... It's a lot of hard work, and nothing is guaranteed. Uh, a lot like life, now that I think about it! lol

ROTFLMAO!!! Darcy, Darcy, Darcy... I can hardly wait to find out YOUR stripper name.... lol :devious

Hi Sarah - That's good info to know. Of course, it would be a crying shame to lose the wealth of knowledge contained in all the posts here... Funny how one never thinks of these things until there is some sort of outage... I'm sure my paranoia will fade in a few days... Right????

It's never happened to this site that I'm aware of. I have no idea how Alex has set up the hosting, and since he seems to be unavailable, I'm not sure how we can ensure that this site keeps going, year after year. The Yahoo boards are free, and I don't think those groups require much maintenance if they're unmoderated, but this type of forum is SO much better. But it does usually cost money to buy an address ($35 a year with an initial 2 year commitment) and then you have to have hosting. There are some free hosting sites out there, but I don't know if they give enough memory to host a site like this. So I can only imagine that this endeavor is costing Alex some money, and I don't know what happens if he ever decides he doesn't want to do it anymore, or God forbid something happens to him. Alex? Are you out there?

Hi Vicki! Welcome. That's pretty intense how closely your kids check up on you... lol I don't do well with people trying to run my life, even if they're trying to run it in the direction I want to go... I would not have had the patience to have that back & forth IM conversation! As soon as he started telling me what to do, I would have said, "Gotta run!!! Love ya, BYE!!" lol Keep us posted on how your plans progress!!

Hi Ellen - Sue's a patient of his, and has posted various info about him. You can do searches on geezersue as the member name, and then Rumbaut in the topic. Here's a link she posted the other day: http://www.obesitylapbandsurgery.com/teamdiaz.html in this thread: http://lapbandtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3111&highlight=rumbaut Hope this helps!

Ryan - I'm glad you've taken the time to consider these questions, so you can be at peace with your decision. The truth is, no matter how many bands a doc has done, there are no guarantees - there are so many factors when you're dealing with human beings. All we can go with is the odds. And if we're keeping you propped up, than it's been an easy thing to do - my arms don't feel tired in the least! So keep on leaning, Buddy, and we'll keep on propping... :mad:

Whew! Great news, Chris! Let us know how the biopsy goes, k? **hugs**